"Highways in Spain The Spanish motorway (highway) network is the eleventh largest in the world, by length. , there are of High Capacity Roads (Sp. ""Vías de Gran Capacidad"") in the country. There are two main types of such roads, autopistas and autovías, which historically differed in the strictness of the standards they are held up to. Between 1990 and 2012 Spain had one of the highest rates of motorway growth in Europe.. The first motorways named ""autopista"" were financed using sovereign debt.. At the end of the 1980s, and before Olympic Games in 1992 in Barcelona, the autonomous Catalan"
"with Catalonia and will be transferred to the national Government as a new stretch of the A-7 (""Autovía del Mediterráneo""). The same applies to the CV-40 highway. ""*: in construction"" — ""†: planned"" Highways in Spain The Spanish motorway (highway) network is the eleventh largest in the world, by length. , there are of High Capacity Roads (Sp. ""Vías de Gran Capacidad"") in the country. There are two main types of such roads, autopistas and autovías, which historically differed in the strictness of the standards they are held up to. Between 1990 and 2012 Spain had one of the highest"
"of then are renewed. Toll roads are called in Spanish ""autopistas"". Freeways, often comparable to ""autopistas"" in building and ride quality, are called "" autovías"". There are some ""autovías"" which are actually built and maintained by private companies, such as Pamplona-Logroño A-12 or Madrid access road M45. The company assumes the building costs and the Autonomous Community where they are located (in the given examples, Navarre and Madrid) pays a yearly per-vehicle fee to the company based upon usage statistics, called ""shadow toll"" (in Spanish, ""peaje en la sombra""). The system can be regarded as a way for the Government"
"in the case of the tolled ""autopistas"", the management is commonly delegated to the concessionaire company. Traditionally, purpose-built autopistas or autovías were assigned names starting with A plus one or two numbers describing their general orientation, while upgraded autovías kept their original names. Thus, the freeway that is currently known as A-5 was still reported as N-V in road signs for years after the upgrade was completed, making it difficult for drivers to know in advance which roads had become autovías. However, in 2003 all Spanish motorways were uniformly renamed with the following criteria: All such names are posted in"
"main inland cities and towns. Several ""autoestradas"" are linked with the Spanish motorway system and, through Spain, to the rest of Europe. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Portugal was the country with the greatest development in the motorway network in the European Union. It had of motorways in 1990 and the number increased to by 1999 and by the end of 2007. Although administratively a separate motorway network exists, in practice each ""autoestrada"" overlaps part or all of an IP (Itinerário Principal or Main Itinerary) or an IC (Itinerário Complementar or Complementary Itinerary). These are designated with an ""A"""
"but the oldest motorways. Both kinds are divided highways with full access control and at least two lanes per direction. General speed limits for both are mandated by the Spanish Traffic Law as , though there are groups that ask for the latter to be raised to . Specific limits may be imposed based on road, meteorologic or traffic conditions. Autopistas are specifically reserved for automobile travel, so all vehicles not able to sustain at least are banned from them. Thus, they may not be an upgrade to an older road, since the Spanish legislation requires an alternate route to"
"each. The Spanish road system is mainly centralised, with six highways connecting Madrid to the Basque Country, Catalonia, Valencia, West Andalusia, Extremadura and Galicia. Additionally, there are highways along the Atlantic (Ferrol to Vigo), Cantabrian (Oviedo to San Sebastián) and Mediterranean (Girona to Cádiz) coasts. Spain aims to put one million electric cars on the road by 2014 as part of the government's plan to save energy and boost energy efficiency. The former Minister of Industry Miguel Sebastián said that ""the electric vehicle is the future and the engine of an industrial revolution."" Spain has the most extensive high-speed rail"
"km are motorways. Bridges accounted for 220 km (1.8%) of this network and tunnels for a further 100 km (0.8%). There are also many national roads. There are 1,045 km of water ways, but they have minor economic importance. The most important port and harbours are Algeciras, Barcelona, Valencia and Bilbao others: Cádiz, Cartagena, Ceuta, Huelva, A Coruña, Las Palmas, Málaga, Melilla, Gijón, Palma de Mallorca, Saguntum, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Los Cristianos (Tenerife), Santander, Tarragona, Vigo, Motril, Almería, Seville, Castellón de la Plana, Alicante, Pasaia, Avilés, and Ferrol. Main airports are Madrid, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Málaga, Gran Canaria,"
"2007 adopted Toll Road Law and Concession Law in 2005 to develop this sector. Spanish toll roads (or ""autopistas"") are designated AP-XX (where XX is the number of the road) as opposed to State-maintained dual carriage-ways (or ""autovías""), called A-XX. Most of them are networked, so a ticket is issued on entering and the fee is paid when leaving the road. Technically, all the roads belong to the Government, although autopistas are built and maintained by private companies under a State concession; when the concession expires, the road reverts to State ownership, although most of them are renewed. There are"
"Autopista de Circunvalación M-30 The M-30 orbital motorway circles the central districts of Madrid, the capital city of Spain. It is the innermost ring road of the Spanish city, and the length is 32,5 km. Outer rings are named M-40, M-45 and M-50. It has, at least, three lanes in each direction, supplemented in some parts by two or three lane auxiliary roads. It connects to the main Spanish radial national roads that start in Madrid. The M30 is the busiest Spanish road, famous for its traffic jams, and surrounded by several landmarks such as Torrespaña (one of the tallest"
"motorways, Spain is one of the countries with the less motorway fatality rates per 1.000 km of motorways, after Finland, Denmark, Croatia, and Hungary: 18,1 fatalities par 1000 kilometers of motorways. Most of the high capacity roads in Spain are under the authority of the General Roads Directorate (Sp. ""Dirección General de Carreteras"") of the Ministry of Public Works, a department of the central Government of Spain, with the exceptions of Navarre and the Basque Country, the only autonomous communities which have been transferred full powers over all roads in their territories. Usually, the DGC manages all road maintenance, but"
"Autovía A-1 The Autovía A-1 (also called ""Autovia del Norte"") is a Spanish autovía route which starts in Madrid and ends in Irun. It replaced the former national road from Madrid to France, the N-I. It carries the designation of European route E05, and, as one of the major north-south arteries of Spain, is one of the country's busiest highways. Between Burgos and Armiñón there is a toll alternative for this autovía, the autopista AP-1. In 2011, work was ongoing to bring the section between Burgos and Madrid up to modern standards. Autovía A-1 currently has two sections: one between"
"Autopista AP-2 The Autopista AP-2 is a highway (autopista) in the north of Spain that connects the northern coast with the eastern coast of the country. This highway, known as the Autopista del Nordeste (North-East motorway), starts at the city of Zaragoza, passes Lleida and ends at El Vendrell, 70 kilometers west of Barcelona, where it connects with AP-7. It is a toll road. It is a major motorway in Spain because it is the only controlled-access motorway between Barcelona and Madrid. The free state-owned A-2 autovía is available between Madrid and Zaragoza, and between Lleida and Barcelona, but from"
"be provided for such vehicles. Many, but not all, autopistas are toll roads, which also mandates an alternate toll-free route (though not necessarily a freeway) under the Spanish laws. An example is the AP-2 toll autopista, which links Zaragoza with Barcelona through the Monegros desert. In this case, the alternative is the N-II, the national road that preceded the A-2 autovía. On the other hand, autovías are usually (though not always) upgrades from older roads, and always untolled. In general, slow vehicles like bicycles and agricultural machinery are allowed under certain restrictions so as to not disrupt the traffic excessively"
"10 km of continuous tunnels. The M30 tunnels run between a point roughly 700 meters north of the junction with A5 motorway and continue all the way up to the junction between M30 and A3 motorway. Autopista de Circunvalación M-30 The M-30 orbital motorway circles the central districts of Madrid, the capital city of Spain. It is the innermost ring road of the Spanish city, and the length is 32,5 km. Outer rings are named M-40, M-45 and M-50. It has, at least, three lanes in each direction, supplemented in some parts by two or three lane auxiliary roads. It"
"trucks. The expressways are, for the most part, toll roads or ""autopistas de cuota"". Non-toll roads are referred to as ""carreteras libres"" (free-roads). Most toll expressways have emergency telephone booths, water wells and emergency braking ramps at short intervals. The toll usually includes a ""travelers' insurance"" (""seguro del viajero"") should an accident occur within the freeway. The tolls expressways are, on average, among the most expensive in the world, according to a comparative study realized in 2004 by the Chamber of Deputies. The most traveled freeways are those that link the three most populous cities in Mexico—Mexico City, Guadalajara and"
"B-10 motorway (Spain) The B-10, also known as Ronda Litoral (, ; English: Coastal Ring Road), is a freeway in Catalonia, Spain partially encircling Barcelona passing through the eastern side of the city. It starts at Nus de la Trinitat interchange in northern Barcelona and runs along the entire length of the Besòs River and the city's coastline south to Nus del Llobregat interchange in Barcelona's southern suburbs, where it becomes the Autovía A-2. Both north and south end interchanges link the freeway to the B-20 or ""Ronda de Dalt"", which encircles Barcelona passing through the western side, jointly forming"
"C-58 highway (Spain) C-58 is a Spanish motorway that starts in Barcelona (Nus de la Trinitat) and ends in Terrassa, crossing Cerdanyola del Vallès, Sabadell and other cities which are part of the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is long and connects with the toll highway C-16 highway (Spain). Despite its shortness, it is the most-transited motorway in Catalonia and one of the most-transited highways in Spain. It is also the first highway that has implemented a new HOV Lane (in Spanish, Carril Bus-VAO), which was inaugurated on October 29, 2012. After Terrassa, it continues as a conventional highway to Manresa,"
"three roads, especially in the summer. The inland road is the main connection to the rest of Spain and abroad, since it links up with the National II road, to the AP-7 motorway and to Girona-Costa Brava airport. Meanwhile, the coastal roads constitute the main routes to Barcelona ( away) and to the French border (approximately away). From the south, the C-32 coastal motorway connects Barcelona to Lloret (exit 134) as far as Blanes; the final are along the GI-600 road heading to Blanes and the GI-682 road heading to Lloret de Mar. Coming from the north (France) on the"
"Madrid and Burgos and another between Miranda de Ebro and Alsasua. Traffic through the 49.6 km discontinuity between Burgos and Miranda de Ebro is redirected to the N-I. Beyond Alsasua, traffic continues on the N-I to the French border. Autovía A-1 The Autovía A-1 (also called ""Autovia del Norte"") is a Spanish autovía route which starts in Madrid and ends in Irun. It replaced the former national road from Madrid to France, the N-I. It carries the designation of European route E05, and, as one of the major north-south arteries of Spain, is one of the country's busiest highways. Between"
"parallel to the C-16 highway. C-58 highway (Spain) C-58 is a Spanish motorway that starts in Barcelona (Nus de la Trinitat) and ends in Terrassa, crossing Cerdanyola del Vallès, Sabadell and other cities which are part of the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is long and connects with the toll highway C-16 highway (Spain). Despite its shortness, it is the most-transited motorway in Catalonia and one of the most-transited highways in Spain. It is also the first highway that has implemented a new HOV Lane (in Spanish, Carril Bus-VAO), which was inaugurated on October 29, 2012. After Terrassa, it continues as"
"Autovía An autovía is one of two classes of major highway in the Spanish road system similar to a British motorway or an American freeway. It is akin to the autopista, the other major highway class, but has fewer features and is never a toll road. Some distinguishing features of an autovía are that it must be divided by a median, it must have restricted access, and it cannot be crossed by other roads. While autopistas are generally new routes, autovías are normally improvements to existing roads, so they may have tighter curves and less safe accesses, often with shorter"
"La Coruña) on the same route is a Spanish ""autovía"" not a free/tollway, motorway, either a two-lane road. ""Autovia"" is in the middle between both road types, but the crosses always are with bridges like in the motorways/toll/freeway. The first kilometres of freeway/free motorway between Las Rozas and Collado Villalba were the first kilometres of freeway/motorway in Spain since 1967. The Autopista AP-6; with toll, (from Collado Villalba km 40 to Adanero km 109 from Madrid) has a total length of 70 km of tollway/toll paying motorway, and the Autopista del Noroeste, entire, 92 km, with Las Rozas-Villalba's freeway. Autopista"
"Autovía del Quinto Centenario (Autovía A-49), which continues west from Seville (where the Autovía A-4 turns toward the south) and goes on to Huelva and into Portugal as European route E01; the Autovía Ruta de la Plata (Autovía A-66), European route E803, which roughly corresponds to the ancient Roman 'Silver Route' from the mines of northern Spain, and runs north from Seville; the Autovía de Málaga (Autovía A-45), which runs south from Córdoba to Málaga; and the Autovía de Sierra Nevada (Autovía A-44), part of European route E902, which runs south from Jaén to the Mediterranean coast at Motril. As"
"sectors, Huesca-Siétamo, Siétamo-Velillas, Velillas-Ponzano, Ponzano-El Pueyo, Barbastro Bypass, Monzón Bypass, Binéfar Bypass, Binéfar Bypass-Aragón/Catalonia border, Aragón/Catalonia border-Almacelles Bypass, Almacelles Bypass-La Cerdera, La Cerdera-Junction with A-2 Motorway at the edge of Lleida [1]. By the summer of 2010 more than half of the A-22 was operational as a four-lane highway comprising 6 of the above sectors. However, in July 2010 a cessation of work due to governmental financial difficulties was announced, despite the Binefar Bypass section being 80% complete. This decision provoked much controversy with local government officials calling for the work to be resumed, citing the dangers associated with the"
"system dates back to the era of King Carlos III. The roads built at this time, radiating from Madrid, form the basis for the ""carreteras nacionales radiales"", numbered clockwise from I to VI, which radiate from Madrid to major ports or border crossings. In the 1960s Spain started to construct ""autopistas"" (toll highways) and ""autovías"" (freeways), and in 2013 had 16,583 km of highways, the biggest network in Europe and the third in the world, only after the USA and China. Southern Expressway (E01) is the first expressway in Sri Lanka. It travers from Kottawa (township in Suburban Colombo) to"
"Barcelona line). A possible reason for this is that AVE services slow down to 200 km/h for the Sierra Morena section of the journey, because of the tight curves, and 250 km/h for the Córdoba-Seville section, possibly on account of medium-speed services running on the line, meaning that they have an easy means of recovering lost time if held up earlier in the journey. AVE´S PROJECT IN THE FUTURE: The first-class motorways in Spain are called autopistas and autovías. As of 2015, Spain had 12,311 km of roads designated as part of the European comprehensive TEN-T network of which 10,636"
"only 70% of the routes has been completed. MP-203 'MP-203' is an unfinished motorway in Madrid, Spain that connects from Mejorada del Campo to San Fernando de Henares. Its construction aim is to reduce the traffic congestion in the A-2 motorway by providing alternative routes for faster route to the destination. The construction of this highway was started on 2005, with 70 million Euros being spent on this construction. However, on 2007, the construction of this highway has been suspended due to the issues of the Madrid–Barcelona high-speed rail line, connection in the R-3 motorway and also during the period"
"Bicycles may travel on the shoulders of some autovías, but not autopistas. ""Autovía"" was also the name of a 2 car DMU train of the Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México that operated between Ciudad Juárez and Chihuahua, Mexico. ""Autovías"" is the name of the first-class service of the Herradura de Plata Mexican bus company operating in the vicinity of the Mexican state of Michoacán. Autovía An autovía is one of two classes of major highway in the Spanish road system similar to a British motorway or an American freeway. It is akin to the autopista, the other major highway class, but"
"physical space to build it elsewhere. Autovía A-8 The Autovía A-8 is a highway (autovía) that connects all the regions on the Northern Coast of Spain. It is known as the Autovía del Cantábrico (also known as ""Transcantábrica"") and connects Baamonde (Begonte, Galicia) and Bilbao, where it continues as the Autopista AP-8 to the French border. The road passes Ribadeo, Gijón, Santander and Bilbao. Most of this infrastructure is already open to traffic (about 95% of its length). Completion is expected in 2015 or 2016. Pending stretches under construction are: Pendueles-Unquera (between Asturias and Cantabria) (12 km) and a new"
"exit numbering scheme of the ""rondes"", the interurban section that is maintained by the Spanish Government does not and exits on this section are numbered 13 to 19 following its own scheme. In addition, route markers are placed north–south in relation to Nus de la Trinitat, where the road's ""Kilometre Zero"" is placed, on the contrary of the exits' numbering. ! Municipality ! km ! Mile ! Exit ! Name ! Destinations ! Notes B-10 motorway (Spain) The B-10, also known as Ronda Litoral (, ; English: Coastal Ring Road), is a freeway in Catalonia, Spain partially encircling Barcelona passing"
"A-26 ""autovía"". These are the sections of the N-260 road: N-260 road (Spain) The N-260, also known as Eje Pirenaico (Pyrenaean Axis), is the northernmost east-west national road in Spain. In contrast to the majority of Spanish national roads, which were specially constructed during the mid-20th century, the path for this highway was established at 80's decade over several previously existing secondary (or even local) roads. This fact, along with the mountainous characteristics of the eastern Pyrenees regions it crosses, is the consequence of several stretches being uneven and narrow paths with features further from the modern standard national roads."
"N-260 road (Spain) The N-260, also known as Eje Pirenaico (Pyrenaean Axis), is the northernmost east-west national road in Spain. In contrast to the majority of Spanish national roads, which were specially constructed during the mid-20th century, the path for this highway was established at 80's decade over several previously existing secondary (or even local) roads. This fact, along with the mountainous characteristics of the eastern Pyrenees regions it crosses, is the consequence of several stretches being uneven and narrow paths with features further from the modern standard national roads. The N-260 is in process of being upgraded to the"